Grove Ferry was having an unbelievable year, and having been down to see a couple of rarities already, the news of a Baillon's Crake got me heading south yet again.
A very early start, I left Arlesey in Bedfordshire at 4am and headed to Kent. The roads were empty and I made good progress, stopping only to get some change for the Dartford Crossing and later to avoid a startled baby Rabbit running about on a roundabout!
I arrived at Grove Ferry at 5.15am and walked down the track to the hide past the viewing ramp.The reedbed fizzed with the noise of Reed and Sedge Warblers, with the occasional Reed Bunting and Cetti's Warbler adding to the early morning noise.
The male Baillon's Crake was heard calling immediately from the reeds at the back of the pool. The call was absolutely weird, a loud staccato, snoring trill, varying in pitch an lasting a couple of seconds. Completely bizarre and like nothing I'd heard before. After a few minutes, I picked up the crake, wading around on the emergent vegetation. He was a little belter and proceeded to show really well, right out in the open, still calling. He was similar in appearance to the Little Crake I'd seen in Kent a couple of years earlier but lacking the red bill base and with much shorter wings. Also, the upperparts were more intricately marked with bright white and black against a bright gingery-rufous background. The eye was bright ruby red, contrasting with the blue-grey underparts. To my surprise there was only one other birder present to admire this performance and after a while I said bid farewell, exchanging mutual grins and wandered back to the car. A first-summer Hobby was perched on a willow in the reedbed and a male Bearded Tit flew low across the path in front of me.
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St Margaret's Bay
I decided to head down to the coast to look for the area's famous breeding Marsh Warblers. With some good 'gen' I arrived in what I took to be the right area. Sadly, the wind had got up which made viewing difficult and with the lateness of the hour I knew there would be no singing to guide me to the right spot. After a while, I stumbled across a pair of Marsh Warblers which appeared to be carrying food, presumably to feed nearby chicks. I watched from a distance, failing to see them perched, and having to be content with flight views only. I didn't want to disturb them, so decided this was as good as I could have hoped for and after watching for a little while, I left them in peace. Back at the car, I rang Birdline, which set my pulse racing with news of an adult Franklin's Gull at Willen Lake at Milton Keynes, just down the road from home! I hightailed it back north but unfortunately it was too late. It had apparently been found in the roost last night by the news was suppressed until this morning by which time the gull was long gone. This info came from a few locals who had also missed out and were rather annoyed. It was a bit frustrating, but I'd had a cracking morning so headed home happy.
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